


For You, I'll Try

by SaltyBuckets



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Anakin Skywalker is a Little Shit, BAMF Padmé Amidala, Force Bond (Star Wars), Force Visions, How Do I Tag, I'm trying my best, Multi, Not Beta Read, Now This Is Podracing, Other, POV First Person, Qui-Gon Jinn Is Confusing, Space Cursing, Space Politics, Tags May Change, Tatooine Slave Culture, That's Not How The Force Works, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It, We Die Like Men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-07
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:14:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25764250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaltyBuckets/pseuds/SaltyBuckets
Summary: Our world sucks. Theirs needs a little help. When you have the ability to change things for the better (or worse) with extensive knowledge of the future and present, why don't you at least try? What's the worst that could happen?Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are confused, Padme is excited, the Naboo crisis is still happening and little Anakin just wants to be a Jedi.Welcome to The Phantom Menace.
Relationships: Anakin Skywalker & Original Character(s), Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Padmé Amidala & Anakin Skywalker
Comments: 18
Kudos: 62





	1. Intimidation Tactics

**Author's Note:**

> Wherein our dear main character has no idea how to handle a teenage queen, an energetic gungan, and a "stoic" Jedi. She's just trying to protect her little brother and keep the universe from preemptively screwing over Anakin Skywalker.
> 
> ("Italics in quotes" is generally in another language)

I huffed, kicking at the sand as I maneuvered around the crowds. More and more people were starting to come to Mos Eisley because of the upcoming Boonta 500; yet another pod race. Except this one I knew would be different. 

The suns were softer today, it was less hot than usual, but I was already sweating. Two damn years on this planet and I still hadn't gotten used to the heat. I brushed stray hairs back behind my ears again and sighed. A Toorian had just blocked my path...again. It was times like this that I wished normal people could just _see_ me, it was a blessing and a curse. I focused and finally decided to manifest myself with the force to roughly push past the ugly thing, who yelled curses after me. I scoffed and told them politely to _go fuck themselves_ in Huttese. I rested my hand on my blaster as I speed walked to Watto's shop. I could feel Ani, like usual, but there was another presence in the force there today, which meant...well...I didn't even want to think about it. I'd honestly hoped I'd had more time, but Ani had turned nine four months ago, so it was bound to happen eventually. I put on my best scowl as I approached, already in a bad mood which got worse when I heard Watto ordering my little brother around. I stopped a ways away, half of me wondering why Qui-Gon hadn't noticed my presence yet, and half of me glad he hadn't. 

I took a few deep breaths in and shook my shoulders, making sure my long braid wasn't starting to undo (It wasn't, Shmi had taught me long ago how to do my hair so tightly it wouldn't come out even in a sandstorm) and scrubbing my dirty hands down my face. I still wasn't quite used to the medium tan my darker skin had, it had been a light tan before I had started going out in the suns more often, now it was a healthy amber shade. Sometimes I missed my original body, my pale skin, and thicker features, but I liked that I was slimmer and _much_ taller now. At least I still had the freckles. 

"Getting off track Ava." I mumbled, shaking my head to clear my thoughts, "Time to go rescue Ani, and, the others I guess."

I squared my shoulders and focused to make myself visible again, mostly just so Padmé, Watto, and Jar Jar could see me. I heard the tail end of Watto saying, "...something to do." Before I walked in.

Ani had hopped up on the counter and started cleaning, but he snapped his head over to me when he felt me approach. 

"Ava!" He grinned, making an aborted motion to run over to me. 

I could feel through our bond that he wanted to hug me, but since Watto was there, he was restraining himself.

All the heads in the room whirled around to look at me, and I licked my lips nervously. 

"Afternoon Watto," I said curtly, ignoring the startled look the Jedi was giving me. 

" _So the girl makes an appearance_." Watto snapped.

I knew he would have snarled at me, but was doing his best not to given the customers in attendance. 

I smirked and walked over to Ani, taking a seat next to him and subtly shifting my hand towards my pistol blaster. " _Relax Watto. I just came to say hello to my brother, nothing special_."

He frowned at the nickname and crossed his arms. " _What do you_ want, _girl?_ "

I mock gasped and put my hand to my chest, " _Can't I just stop by to say hello? You wound me Watto."_

He scoffed and rolled his eyes. " _You never show up unless something happens with the karking slave-folk_ ," he made a pointed gesture towards the "strangers", " _We'll talk later. I have customers to get to girl_."

I smiled brightly and turned to Ani, giving him a mental nudge not to stare and get back to work. He squinted at me in confusion but complied, leaning ever so slightly closer to me. I picked up a random part and joined him in scrubbing, just to look busy and ignore Qui-Gon's stare at my back.

"Sorry about her." Watto chuckled, "So," he drawled, "Let me take these three out back, huh? Ni you'll find what you need."

I bit my lip and stifled a laugh when I heard Qui-Gon sternly tell Jar Jar not to touch anything, and Jar Jar make a displeased sound and stick his tongue out at the Jedi.

I had forgotten how annoying the Gungan was. I watched as he and R2-D2 left, and squealed internally. R2! He was here! I loved the little astromech, he was my favorite droid, besides BB-8 and BD-1. I mean, of course I loved Threepio! I was there every step of his creation. I said nothing when Ani turned around and started to stare at Padmé, while Jar Jar went looking at stuff in the background. 

I cringed internally. Here it comes.

"Are you an angel?" He asked.

Yep. I _knew_ I shouldn't have told him about angels!

"What?" Padmé asked, turning around and staring at Ani.

I decided to keep quiet and let this go as the universe intended it, cringing all the way.

"An angel. I heard my sister and deep space pilots talk about them." Ani replied. "They're supposed to be the most beautiful creatures in the universe."

I refrained from elbowing him.

He paused, and scrunched up his face "Except mom and Ava."

I smiled and let out a silent laugh. Hadn't expected that.

Padmé walked closer to us, her long hair swishing behind her. 

"They live in the sky, I think," Ani added.

"You are a curious little boy," Padmé smiled, "How do you know so much?"

"Well," he glanced at me and smiled, "My sister tells lots of stories, and I listen to all the traders and star pilots that come through here." He paused again, "I'm a pilot, you know, and someday I'm gonna fly away from this place."

I smiled softly at him. I knew for a fact he would.

"You're a pilot?" Padmé questioned.

Anakin nodded, "Mm-hmm. All my life."

Padmé smiled again. "How long have you been here? Both of you?"

"Me?" Ani said, "Since I was really little. Three, I think."

"And you?" Padmé turned to me.

"Oh, umm, I've been here for about two years. I was raised elsewhere, but I got stranded here and haven't left since." I stopped and wrapped an arm around Ani, who leaned into my side. Anakin blushed and smiled up at me.

Padmé laughed at his reaction, "That's very sweet."

"My mom and I were sold to Gardulla the Hutt," Ani piped up, "But she lost us betting on the Podraces."

Padmé startled, "You're a slave? Both of you?"

I cringed. No. _I_ wasn't, but I wasn't going to correct her.

Anakin frowned and stopped cleaning his part, "I'm a person, and my name is Anakin."

"Oh," Padmé gasped, "I'm so sorry. I don't fully understand." She looked around the shop, "This is a strange place to me."

"My name is Padmé. What's your name?" She asked me.

"My name is Ava," I answered, offering her a smile of forgiveness.

"It's very nice to meet you Ava." She looked thankful and turned her attention back down to Ani, "And you too Anakin."

He pursed his lips and looked up at me, sending me disappointment through our bond. I frowned and sent him a question back. He replied with mixed feelings towards Padmé, probably because he'd been told Angels were supposed to be the nicest beings, yet Padmé had been rude. I shrugged _~I don't know Ani. She's a person, people don't always know how what they're saying will affect peopl_ e.~

He sighed softly at my thoughts but perked up when voices started to come back. I leaned back a bit to see behind him and watched as Qui-Gon, R2, and Watto slowly came back. Then Jar Jar interrupted the peace by tapping on a crab droid and making it jump into a bunch of stuff. 

"Ah! Don't-!" I tried to stop him, but I was too late.

The crab droid crashed into a few other droids and started running. Jar Jar gasped and stood up, following it.

"Wh- wheres yousa goin?!" He exclaimed, trying to catch the droid with his long arms. 

He tripped down the steps and the droid let out a chittering laugh. I frowned and groaned softly. This was going to make a mess and Ani and I were going to get in trouble. Padmé turned to the scene and smiled. Ani just looked annoyed. He knew just as well as I did that the Gungan was trouble.

"I got ya!" Jar Jar exclaimed, reaching for the droid again and finally grabbing it by the neck.

"Hey!" Ani scowled at the Gungan.

Jar Jar tilted his head, "What?" 

"Hit the nose," I told him, gesturing with one hand to the droid's head.

Jar Jar dropped the droid, "Oh!" Then tapped the rim of its head.

The small brown droid folded back up into a disc, or a rock as Ani called it. I sighed, then put my jumper cylinder down and hopped off the counter. I skirted around the much shorter Padmé (gods she was only 14!) and picked the crab droid up. 

"Please don't do that again, it makes a mess." I gave Jar Jar a pointed look and walked over to the droid scrap pile, fixing the bent in half Tk-21 droid and placing the crab back on its box seat. He laughed nervously. I wandered back over to the counter and hopped up, swinging my long legs slightly.

"So," I looked to Padmé, "Where did you come from?"

"Oh, we're a very long way from home, one of the core worlds in fact." She smiled politely, expertly dodging my question.

I hummed, "Woah, that is a long ways away. You don't look dressed for the heat either, you doing okay?"

The young queen-in-disguise looked down and brushed her skirt off, giggling softly. "No, I suppose not. And yes, I am doing fine. These clothes may be bulky, but they are quite airy."

I chuckled and pulled my sleeves up to my elbows. "That's good. Wouldn't want you to overheat. It took me a while to get used to the suns."

"And the sand!" Ani piped up.

I grimaced and elbowed him, "That too. But you hate it as much as I do Ani."

He shrugged and blinked innocently, "Whatever do you mean?"

I sent him a glare, "Don't use my own words against me young man, not in front of the lady."

He blushed, seemingly because he forgot Padmé was there. "Sorry miss."

Padmé laughed and put a hand up to her mouth, sending me a mirthful look. I grinned back in response. 

"Don't worry Anakin, I believe Ava was just teasing you," Padmé smirked.

Anakin kicked my shin and I hissed, reaching up and messing with his sandy blonde hair. He groaned and pushed my hand away, mentally sticking his tongue out at me. 

~ _I hate it when you do that!_ ~ He shouted over our force bond.

~ _That, my dear boy, is the point_.~ I teased back.

"She's only doing this because we have guests in the shop." Anakin pouted, "She usually just stays home."

I rolled my eyes at him. "As far as you know."

Padmé perked up at that, a curious look on her face, "What do you mean by that?"

I side-eyed Ani and stuck my hand to the side of my face, blocking Ani's view of my mouth. 

"Girl business. Maybe a bit of good samaritan charity work too." I mouthed to the girl.

She giggled and sent me a knowing look. She _had_ derived the hidden meaning in my words. Although, I hadn't expected otherwise. Our heads turned when Jar Jar activated the crab droid again.

"Eek!" He jumped out of the way, this time the droid was out for blood.

Or parts, K-16 didn't understand biological things. I sighed and jumped off the counter, running over to the mess-making duo before they could do more harm. 

" _Please_ ," I turned to Jar Jar, slipping between the two and tapping K-16's head, "Do, not, touch, him, again."

Jar Jar had the gall to look sheepish. I smiled pointedly and put the droid back on its box, for the second time that day. "Why don't you go look over there," I pointed to a pile of mostly-whole _deactivated_ droids, "Those ones won't spring to life."

"Okey dokie." Jar Jar turned and walked over to the scrap pile.

I let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of my nose, walking back over to Anakin and Padmé. Anakin was talking about how he had fixed K-16. 

"Wouldn't have lasted long anyways if I wasn't so good at fixing things." Ani remarked.

I leaned against the counter this time, too wary of Jar Jar making a further mess to take a seat. Speak of the devil, the annoyance had gotten himself tangled in clips. _Just...h_ _ow ??_ He was hopping back over to us when Qui-Gon walked briskly through the back door, R2 trailing faithfully behind. 

"We're leaving." Qui-Gon stated, "Jar Jar."

Underneath all that Jedi stoicism I could see that he was highly annoyed. Well yeah, Watto wasn't the easiest to work with even on a good day. And this _was_ a good day. Plus, if I remembered correctly, the Jedi had tried to pay for the parts with Republic credits. And there was no way Watto would accept those. They were worth almost nothing out here in Hutt space. Jar Jar crashed into the ground as the Jedi passed us. I rolled my eyes at the man's attitude.Padmé started backing away, following faithfully. 

"I'm glad to have met you Anakin, Ava." She smiled brightly.

"Glad to meet you too!" Ani said back.

"Bye! Good to meet you!" I called after her.

We watched as the group left, then once they were out of eyesight I turned to Anakin and hugged him against me with one arm. "Don't worry Ani, we'll see them again soon."

He looked up at me and sighed, "How can you know that? Is it a vision thing?"

I shrugged, "More like a gut feeling."

Ani sighed again and leaned into me for a few seconds more before going back to cleaning his part. I let go of him and laid down on the counter, my legs dangling off the edge, and let myself de-manifest. I let out a long groan when the familiar headache started to pound against my forehead and the back of my eyes. 

"Remind me never to stop manifesting ever again." I mumbled miserably.

Anakin nodded, "Noted."

Then Watto came flying back into the shop, looking quite pissy. I turned my head to glare at the winged bug man.

" _Who does that outlander think he is huh?_ " Watto exclaimed angrily in Huttese, " _Wanting parts for a Nubian ship, and wanting to pay in Republic credits!_ " He scoffed, " _Talking like he was some high and mighty Jedi too. Stupid man!_ "

Ani continued to clean in silence. 

Watto snarled, " _Did your useless human of a sister leave too? Lazy slut_." 

I sighed and sat up, glaring at the Toydarian. I was used to his insults. He never knew I was around, but I always came to the shop to hang out with Ani when I wasn't busy.

Watto finally rounded on my little brother. " _And you, lazy boy! Get to the back and work_ _!_ " 

Ani hopped off the counter and sprinted to the back workshop. I groaned again and followed him to the workroom, sitting down in a corner Ani always kept clear, my corner. 

"Watto will let you go home soon." I said quietly, "Since he knows I just came by." 

Ani stayed silent, grabbing a sonic-wrench and twisting a screw into place on an old motivator. I frowned, was he angry at me?

"Ani?"

He sighed and stopped messing with the broken hump of metal. "No, I'm not mad at you Ava. I'm just disappointed."

I shuffled over to his side when I noticed he felt sad through the force. I sent him a question and he responded by leaning into my side. I quickly scooped him up into a hug, despite how my body was aching from my earlier...disputes. He wrapped his skinny arms around my neck and rested his chin on my shoulder. 

"I know Ani. But things will get better, soon."

He sighed, "How soon?"

I leaned my head against his and squeezed him lightly. "Really soon."

We sat together on the floor like that for a while. Then we heard Watto come flying towards us. We quickly separated and Ani went back to looking like he was busy working. Watto stopped in the doorway, looking significantly less pissed and more resigned. 

"Time to go home boy. Your sister will come back soon if you don't." He shuddered.

I smirked. "That's right, nobody hurts my brother."

Anakin stood up and put his tools away, quickly shuffling out of the shop. I followed behind him, then walked at his side, manifesting again. I knew we were going to see the group again really soon, and I didn't want to risk Ani meeting them alone. 

"Thanks for getting Watto to let me leave early," Ani said cheerfully, his hand brushing off his pants as we walked.

"No problem Ani. It's my job as a big sis to protect you, and let you go home early for lunch." I said back.

God my head was pounding. I really shouldn't be phasing this much. But I'd done it for longer in the past, so I could hold out for at least another two or three hours. We chatted while we walked home, mostly it was just Anakin grilling me on how I knew the pretty lady and other people were coming. I gave him no answers, to his frustration. Then I caught sight of Jar Jar again. He was standing by a frog stand. Oh no, not again. 

"Come on Ani, we've got to go save an idiot," I mumbled.

My little brother gave me a confused look, but hurried after me.

"How he becomes a senator, I'll never know," I mumbled under my breath. I sped up as I saw Jar Jar get knocked down by Sebulba. 

" _Careful Sebulba_ ," I said in Huttese as I walked up to the pair, " _He's a big time outlander_."

" _I'd hate to see you diced before we race again._ " Ani chided. 

Gods I love that boy but right then I just wanted to smack him.

" _So the ghost girl makes an appearance_." Sebulba spat at me.

I rolled my eyes, " _Real mature Sebulba_."

He snarled and turned to Ani, " _And you, next time we race boy, it will be the end of you_."

" _Not if I get to you first sleemo."_ I hissed.

" _Shut up slut_." He hissed back, " _I'm talking to the boy, not some disappearing girl._ "

I clicked my tongue, " _Language Sebulba, there's a child present_."

The short alien rolled his eyes and started to turn away. " _If you weren't slaves, I'd squash you now_."

" _If you weren't a coward I'd punch your face in_." I snapped.

Ani put a hand on my leg. I looked down and relaxed. No one was going to hurt him. I was there to make certain of that.

" _Yeah, it'd be a pity if you had to pay for us._ " Ani snarked back.

I noticed Qui-Gon walk over to us. I quickly offered Jar Jar a hand, which he gratefully took. Then I swiftly pulled him to his feet. He looked at me in surprise, and I just smirked knowingly. 

"Hi," Anakin greeted Qui-Gon.

"Hi there." The Jedi replied, looking thoroughly confused as to what had just been said.

He looked up at me and I waved, "Hello."

"Your buddy here was about to be turned into goo." Anakin said, pointing to the Gungan who was rubbing his throat.

I rolled my eyes. "He picked a fight with a Dug, a pretty dangerous Dug called Sebulba." 

"Mesa haten crunchen." Jar Jar said, "Das da las ting mesa want."

"Nevertheless, the boy and girl are right." Qui-Gon said, turning to Jar Jar, "You were heading into trouble."

"Thanks, my young friends." He nodded to Ani and I and started to walk away.

"No problem." I smiled.

"But- but-" Jar Jar stammered, putting his hands up in the air in protest, "But mesa doen nutten!"

Ani and I stayed after the group. 

"That was…"

"Weird." 

I turned to him and we both burst into giggles. 

"Oh my god Ani," I gasped, "The poor man, having to babysit the Gungan."

Ani giggled harder at that, "A frog? Really?! All that trouble for a dune frog?!"

I snorted and laughed more, before I noticed the sandstorm brewing on the horizon. "Shit. Ani," 

He looked up and cringed, "Oh no. That's not good."

"We need to get home, now," I said, internally pleading against what I knew was going to happen.

"But those people! And the pretty girl!" Ani protested, "Their ship was broken down, they're never gonna make it back in time!"

"I-"

He gave me his best puppy (or tooka, I guess) eyes. I sighed and relented. It had to happen. Apparently it was the " _will of the force"_.

“Okay. Fine." I started walking towards the group again, "Let's go Ani."

He grinned and sprinted off, I followed closely behind. We stopped at Mahara’s fruit stand, since the old lady was a good friend, and I paid for a few pallies. Then, Anakin went up to Qui-Gon and handed him one.

"Here, you'll like these pallies," Ani said, holding one out for the man. 

He looked down and his face twitched in momentary confusion, before settling back into an unreadable mask. 

"Thank you."

Then as Qui-Gon was putting the fruit away, he boldly flashed his lightsaber. I groaned internally. Really man? In the middle of town? I mean, I knew it had to happen for the plotline to progress, but still.

"Would you like one miss?" I held one out for Padmé, only glancing at the saber long enough for Qui-Gon to notice me doing so.

"Oh! Hello again." She smiled, "Yes please, thank you."

"You're welcome." I nodded, then repeated the gesture with Jar Jar.

"Oh, my bones are aching." The old lady seller, Mahara, spoke up suddenly.

I turned to her and nodded, knowing what she was going to say next. She always said it before a storm. And that was surprisingly often, given how much I ventured out into the dune wastes.

"Storms coming up Ani, Ava. You better get home quick." She said solemnly, gazing out at the sand.

Ani nodded and turned around. 

"Do you have shelter?" He asked the Jedi.

"We'll head back to our ship," the man replied.

"Is it far?" I asked, following behind Ani who was following Padmé.

"It's on the outskirts," Padmé responded.

"You'll never reach the outskirts in time," Anakin pointed out.

"Sandstorms are very, very dangerous," I added, trying to help sway their decision.

"Come on, I'll take you to our place," Ani said, beckoning them to follow him. 

I fell back beside R2, not feeling comfortable next to the Jedi. He was too...calm. Emotionless. It kind of freaked me out. 

"Hello." I greeted the droid.

/Hello organic!/ R2 beeped back.

"What's your name?" I asked, even though I already knew.

He gave a few surprised beeps. /You understand binary?/

I laughed, "Yes, I do. My little brother taught it to me."

R2 beeped happily. /My designation is R2-D2./ He spoke, /What about you organic?/

"I'm Ava," I smiled, "The little boy in the front is my brother, Anakin."

/It is nice to meet you Ava./ R2 chirped.

"You too!" I grinned, "Can I call you R2, or would you be offended?"

The droid was silent for a moment, /R2 is acceptable./

"Yay!" I clapped my hands quietly. "It's very nice to meet you R2!"

/You as well Ava./ R2 beeped happily back.

Oh, I loved him.

"Is this your first time on a dustball planet?"

He made angry beeps, /Yes. I hate the sand, it is messing with my gears./

I smiled sympathetically, "When we get back home, I can help clean them. If you trust me enough that is."

R2's dome swiveled to look at me, and we walked/rolled in silence for a few seconds. /That would be acceptable./

"Cool!" I glanced up at Qui-Gon, who seemed like he was listening to Ani ramble to Padmé, 

"You'll have to excuse the mess, Ani and I share a workspace and it's pretty crowded with materials." 

/Small shop?/ R2 questioned.

I snorted. "Considering we live in the slave dwellings, very."

He chirped in alarm, /Slaves?/

"Well," I glanced ahead again, and walked a bit closer to R2, lowering my voice, "Ani and Shmi are, but I'm not. I'm a freeborn, but I was stranded on Tatoo a few years ago. They took me in."

/Freeborn?/

I nodded, "I wasn't born a slave, and I'll never be one." I scowled, "I wouldn't let it happen."

R2 beeped in agreement, /No organic should be a slave./

"And no droid should be one either," I replied back.

R2 stopped rolling forwards, and I stopped as well. Was he okay?

"R2?" 

/You believe droids should not be slaves?/ R2 asked quietly.

I smiled, "Yes. I believe all droids have the capability to be, or already are, sentient. That's why I try to treat them like they are living." I chuckled, "I've seen way too many video games and movies where androids or robots become sentient and destroy us for how we treated them. So I just treat them like the people they are."

R2 twittered and began rolling again, a little faster to catch up with the group. /I like you Ava./

I laughed, "I like you too R2."


	2. Meddling Jedi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She paused and met Ani's and my eyes, “They were meant to help you.”

By the time we reached home, the wind was howling and sand was being pelted into our faces. I grimaced and put my arm over my eyes, one hand on R2's dome. It was to make sure he was following okay, and partly because I didn't want him to get lost in the storm, even though he was probably faring better than we were. Plus, he hadn't protested it. Ani walked in front, trudging through the sand towards home. When we finally reached the apartment, Ani plugged in the code and the six of us stumbled into the mostly sand-free environment. I gave R2 a small smile before I rushed up to Ani and entered just behind him.

"Mom!" He called out.

"We're home!" I added, tapping my boots to the wall to get rid of the access sand and shaking myself thoroughly.

I grinned as Shmi walked out from the kitchen, a surprised look on her face. "Oh," she eyed each of the group, especially Padmé and Qui-Gon.

I nodded subtly when our eyes locked, and we both looked to Ani as he spoke.

"These are our friends mom." Ani smiled.

"Hello." Jar Jar greeted, still looking around curiously.

Qui-Gon walked over to where Shmi and I stood, crossing his arms in a very Jedi-like manner, and hunching slightly because the ceilings were low. I tried not to laugh, but Shmi must have caught on because she shot me a glare. 

"I'm Qui-Gon Jinn." The man introduced himself. "Your children were kind enough to offer us shelter." 

Ani rambled to Padmé in the background, pulling her towards the workroom. 

"Ani!" 

He stopped and turned to me, "What?"

"Be careful, it's messy and they don't know their way around, make sure they don't get hurt." I glanced at Jar Jar, "And don't make Threepio upset."

He rolled his eyes, "Yes Ava." 

I rolled mine back and smiled at Padmé and R2.

"Sorry about them," Shmi said, glancing behind her to check on Ani, "And I'm sorry for any trouble they caused."

Qui-Gon smiled faintly, "Quite the opposite, they helped us out of a rough spot."

He nodded to me, "Thank you for that young lady."

"No problem." I started walking backward, "Hey mama, I'm gonna go with Ani and make sure he's not doing anything."

Shmi smiled at me and nodded, "Okay, tell him to be careful."

I laughed, "Sure."

I sprinted to the workroom and walked in just as Ani was telling Padmé about Threepio. 

"He's a protocol droid to help Mom," Ani was saying, "Watch."

He reached over and pushed a small button on Threepio's neck, and the droid's eye lights flickered to life. He instantly started talking.

"Oh...my." He sat up, "Oh-where is everybody?" 

"Eyes Ani," I reminded him.

"Whoops, Yeah," Anakin reached over to grab Threepio's detached visual processor, the one we had taken off the day before to do some maintenance on the wires behind it. He popped it back on and Threepio started to look around.

"Oh, hello." He looked from Ani to me, "I am C-3PO, human-cyborg relations. How might I serve you?"

Padmé smiled in awe at the droid, "He's perfect."

"Oh? Perfect?" Threepio asked.

I giggled, "Not quite, but he's almost there."

"Why hello Master Ava." Threepio finally seemed to recognize me, "How are you today?"

"I'm fine, thanks for asking Threepio."

Ani rolled his eyes at my indulgence and went back to looking at Padmé, "When the storm is over, I'll show you my racer."

"We're building a podracer," I clarified.

Threepio finally stood up and started walking over to R2. "I'm not sure this floor is entirely stable."

I snorted and walked over to him, putting a steadying hand on his arm, "Sorry bud, we haven't quite finished recalibrating your leg joints yet."

"Why thank you Master Ava." He exclaimed happily. Then he turned to R2. "Oh, hello. I don't believe we have been introduced."

R2 whirred happily, /Hello! I am called R2-D2./

Threepio bent down, "R2-D2. A pleasure to meet you. I am C-3PO, human-cyborg relations."

/Why are you naked? Were you stripped for parts?/ R2 beeped curiously.

If Threepio could frown, I was sure that was what he would be doing.

"I beg your pardon," he exclaimed, "But what do you mean "naked?"

/You have no coverings, like how organics wear clothing. Your parts are showing./ R2 snapped.

Ooh, feisty. I grinned. I was witnessing the birth of a generations-long friendship/relationship. And R2 was already being sassy.

"My parts are showing!" Threepio straightened and waved his arms frantically, "My goodness! Oh!"

R2 laughed. I dragged my hand down my face to hide my smile. 

"He's teasing you Threepio." I tapped the android’s arm again, "Don't listen to him. You look beautiful just the way you are." I paused, "Exposed wires and all."

"Was that supposed to make me feel better Master Ava?" Threepio asked.

"Well," I shrugged, "I guess- yeah?"

"Then thank you. At least _someone_ sees the good in me." Threepio said dramatically.

I rolled my eyes fondly. "Always C3." 

"Is he always like that?" Padmé asked curiously, as Threepio and R2 started talking again.

"Mostly, yeah." I walked back over to the workbench.

"I tried programming him otherwise, but this was the best we could get," Ani admitted.

"Shush Ani," I teased, "He's perfect just the way he is." 

Ani crossed his arms, "Riiiight."

As Anakin and Padmé talked, and as R2 and Threepio argued in the background, I moved to the wall and leaned against it. I crossed my arms and let my face fall into a frown. If my timing was correct, Obi-Wan should be getting a call about the Naboo crisis and then prohibiting anyone from responding to the call. And of course, he was warning Qui-Gon about the trap. I wondered if it really had been a trap or not, since nothing came of the transmission. I supposed it didn’t really matter one way or another, It wasn’t going to be relevant any time soon. My thoughts then wandered back to my morning escapades. I had gone on another mission to deliver supplies and aid to the slaves in the Eluthar mines, just to the south of the city. It had been difficult, since I had to stay invisible for most of the time. Not to mention the trauma from seeing the horrible condition the slaves were in. Thankfully, I had managed to get the children out of there a week before. Some good samaritans had allowed them to board a large passenger freighter, as part of the Stronghold mission. I was still proud of founding it, since it was helping reduce the slaves, slave trade, and freeing slaves in Hutt space. Then I winced as I moved my knee wrong. There had been explosions, and I had been forced to fight for my life and use the force. The fresh mottled black and purple bruises all over my body were a testament to that. Even though, again, the mission had been successful. Plus, my blaster was almost out of charges and I dreaded having to go buy more since the seller wasn’t very friendly. They had good prices sure, but for some reason they absolutely _hated_ me. Oh, and Maul was coming soon. I groaned inwardly at the thought. How the _hell_ was I supposed to tell Qui-Gon that the sith apprentice was coming without seeming like I already knew? It just wasn’t possible. I sighed quietly and closed my eyes, trying to block out the more negative thoughts and focus on Ani’s light in the force. R2 rolled over to me and bumped my leg. I jumped and hissed when that bumped my back. 

“What’s up bud?” I asked, uncrossing my arms and kneeling down to his level.

/I would like to take up your earlier offer. My parts are grinding with all the sand./ R2 whirred in annoyance.

I snorted in amusement and rolled my eyes fondly at the droid. “Sure thing dude, follow me.”

I stepped around where Ani and Padmé were talking over a deactivated C3 and took R2 to my area. Grabbing my droid cleaning box, I rummaged through it until I found what I needed. R2 rolled up next to me and I started to clean. He made snarky comments throughout the whole thing, and I eagerly joked along with him, whining about my own problems and agreeing with him on how annoying organics were. My hydro spanner was chipping sand out of a buildup on one of his joints, and there was a wrench in my mouth when Shmi finally called for lunch. Anakin ran out and dragged Padmé along with him. I spat out the wrench and brushed off the last of the sand from R2’s dome. 

I smiled and brushed my hands off on my pants, “There you go, all better and mostly, sand free.”

R2 beeped happily and bumped against my legs in appreciation. I laughed and patted his dome. Then, I groaned and finally stood up, wincing when something in my torso twinged, and putting a hand to my ribs. 

“Karking hell. Stupid bruises.” I muttered, making my way out of the room.

R2 made a concerned beep, and I waved him off.

“No, I’m fine. Just a little banged up from earlier today,” I smiled to him, “Nothing to worry about.”

He made a disbelieving sound but thankfully left it at that. I led him back to the kitchen and found everyone already seated around the table. Shmi smiled at me as I took my seat beside her and Padmé. Today for lunch was wampa steak and mashed lugola, one of my favorites. She sent me a pointed look when I winced as I sat down, and I shrugged sheepishly. Oh gods, she was going to hound me when our guests were gone. I kind of zoned out after that and just focused on eating my food. I didn’t want to sound rude but I was exhausted and my whole body ached. Nobody seemed to care about my silence though, I was grateful for that. I finally tuned into the conversation when Shmi said something about slaves.

“All slaves have a transmitter placed inside their bodies somewhere.” She remarked, pouring Jar Jar and Ani more bantha milk.

“Ava and I’ve been working on a scanner to try and locate ours.” Ani spoke up, “We’re getting pretty close!”

I scoffed and shook my head, “Yeah but any attempt to escape-”

“And they blow you up,” Shmi continued.

“So we have to be _super_ careful.” Ani finished.

The outlanders looked alarmed at that. Well, yeah, they should. Having a transmitter was terrifying, and even if I didn’t have one, I’d taken out one too many with help from the force to not be scared of them. I hid a shiver, I’d also seen what they could do first hand. 

“How wude!” Jar Jar exclaimed.

Padmé frowned and looked up from her food, “I can’t believe there’s still slavery in the galaxy.”

I sighed and shared a glance with Shmi. Of course they wouldn’t know about it if they were from the core, or even inner rim.

“The Republic’s anti-slavery laws-”

“The _Republic_ doesn’t exist out here.” Shmi cut the young queen off, “We must survive on our own.”

“And hope to live another day.” I added quietly.

We sat in tense silence, that was then quickly broken when Jar Jar stuck out his tongue like a frog and snatched a mukka from the center of the table.

I resisted the urge to facepalm. Goddamnit, stupid Gungan.

At least he had the gall to look sheepish. “Xcuse me.”

“Has anybody ever seen a podrace?” Ani piped up, trying to lighten the conversation.

I laughed at him through our bond. _~Really Ani? Podracing?~_

He sent me annoyance back _~Well what else am I supposed to say?!~_

Qui-Gon hummed, “They have podracing on Malastare. Very fast, very dangerous.”

“I’m the only human who can do it,” Ani responded, feeling very proud through our bond. 

“You’re probably the only human beside me who has tried Ani.” I shot back.

He rolled his eyes at me briefly, then looked back to the Jedi when he spoke again.

The man picked up another luk from his plate, “You must have Jedi reflexes if you race pods.” Then caught Jar Jar’s tongue as he tried to snag another mukka fruit. “Don’t do that again.”

Jar Jar whimpered in acknowledgment and quickly snapped his head back from the table. I rolled my eyes, _again_.

“You’re a Jedi knight, aren’t you,” Ani asked.

I shot him a look from across the table, _~Ani!~_

 _~What?! You know it's true!~_ He snapped back.

The table went silent, and everyone turned their eyes to look at the man.

“What makes you think that?” He asked, tilting his head at my little brother.

“I saw your lightsaber.” Ani responded softly, “Only Jedi carry that kind of weapon.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose and rubbed my hand down my face. Here we go.

Qui-Gon glanced at me before turning back to Anakin. “Perhaps I killed a Jedi and took it from him.”

I raised an eyebrow and pointed my spork at him, “Not likely. They’re _way_ too skilled to go down _that_ fast.”

“No one can kill a Jedi,” Ani added.

Qui-Gon looked between us and shook his head, “I wish that were so.”

 _~Can I tell him about the dreams I had?~_ Ani asked hesitantly.

_~I-~_

I paused for a split second, this could be the deciding point in the timeline. If I didn’t let Ani say anything, he had way less of a chance of actually becoming a Jedi, however slim that chance was. 

_~Yes. Just be careful, okay Anakin?~_

_Hesitance/relief/gratefulness_ echoed from Ani’s side of the force. He knew I was being serious, I only ever used his full name when I was serious.

“I had a dream I was a Jedi,” Ani finally admitted, “I came back here and freed all the slaves.” 

He paused, “Have you come to free us?”

“No,” Qui-Gon immediately answered, almost choking on his milk, “I’m afraid not.”

I bit my lips to hold back a scowl. Oh he could have, but he wouldn’t, I thought bitterly. Not him, the Republic, the Trade Federation, _or_ his precious Jedi Order would. That's why I was doing the dirty work myself.

“Why else would you be here?” Ani asked.

I could feel him trying to shove down his disappointment, and I sent him a reassuring wave. 

Padmé looked down at her plate, and I moved my hand to hold on to Shmi’s sleeve. She moved her hand to intertwine our pinkies, squeezing my finger lightly. Nobody wanted to say that they _didn’t_ want to free the slaves. I knew that they wouldn’t, that’s why I had done so much to free them myself. I watched as Ani looked around the table, carefully hiding his disappointed look. Qui-Gon sighed and leaned forward on the table.

“I can see there’s no fooling you Anakin,” the Jedi spoke, “We’re on our way to Coruscant, the central system in the Republic; on a very important mission.”

“How did you end up in the outer rim?” Ani asked.

I waited for one of them to answer.

“Our ship was damaged,” Padmé admitted, “And we’re stranded here until we can repair it.”

“We can help.” I blurted.

The whole table turned to look at me in surprise. Oh shit, I really just said that out loud didn’t I?

“Ani can fix anything, and I can fix stuff too.”

Qui-Gon raised an eyebrow and smiled softly, “I believe you can,” he stopped to take another drink, “But first we must acquire the parts we need.”

“Wit no-nutten mula to trade.” Jar Jar said sadly.

“These junk dealers must have a weakness of some kind,” Padmé muttered.

“Gambling.” Shmi shook her head.

“Everything around here revolves betting on those stupid races,” I grumbled, “Never makes much money for the regular folk either, so it’s a wonder why anyone still places bets.”

“In podracing,” Qui-Gon remarked as he folded his arms, “Greed can be a powerful ally.”

I snorted and shook my head, “Always and forever.”

Qui-Gon shot me a quizzical look. I turned away from his gaze and settled back on Ani. His attention made me nervous, I was afraid he would figure me out before I even got the chance to explain myself. Plus I still wasn't sure how I felt about the man, my opinion had been based on vague character descriptions and what I could see in the movies. 

“Ava and I built a racer,” Anakin said, “It’s the fastest one ever.”

“There’s a big race tomorrow,” I admitted, “On Boonta Eve.”

“You could enter our pod.”

“ANI!” Shmi and I exclaimed.

“Watto won’t let you,” Shmi reminded him.

“Watto doesn’t know we built it!” Ani replied, “You could make him think it was yours and get him to let us pilot for you!”

“I don’t want you, let alone both of you to race,” Shmi said sternly, “It’s awful. I die a little every time Watto makes you do it!”

“But mom,” Ani complained softly, “I love it, Ava likes it too.” He looked back up from the table, “The prize money would more than pay for the parts they need.”

I bit my tongue to prevent myself from admitting that I had more than enough money for the parts. But all my plans for our future rode on Qui-Gon taking Ani’s option and negotiating for him. I hadn’t even told mo- Shmi about it yet.

“Anakin...” Shmi protested halfheartedly.

“Your mother’s right,” Qui-Gon agreed, “Is there anyone friendly to the Republic who can help us?”

“Not right now, no,” I shook my head, “Anyone even remotely like that would never be around here at this time of year.”

Except well, the entire multi-planetary system slave freeing movement I had started. But even then, they were loathe to come around this time of year anyway, the people I had helped this morning and the past week were the last people that could be helped for a while now.

Shmi squeezed my pinky again when she and Ani looked down sadly. I squeezed gently back. Everything was going to be fine mama, just wait a little bit longer.

“Mom…”

I looked back up at Ani.

“You say the biggest problem in this universe is that nobody helps each other,” Ani said quietly.

Shmi sighed and pursed her lips.

“I’m sure Qui-Gon doesn’t want to put your son and daughter in danger,” Padmé said softly, 

“We’ll find some other way.”

Shmi squeezed my finger again before letting go. “No.”

She shook her head, “There is no other way. I may not like it, but they can help you.” She paused and met Ani and my eyes, “They were meant to help you.”

Ani and I looked to Qui-Gon in anticipation. 

He shared a look with both of us, then nodded slightly. “Alright.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another lovely chapter! Poor mc, she's having a tough time eh? Don't worry, things start to speed up soon. The movie in general is pretty slow though.


	3. Give Me A Break

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Slavery is discussed...briefly. Probably not long enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! Thank you for reading, I really didn't think anyone would like this. I can't tell you how much that anybody read this means to me. Thank you so much!

Well.

Lunch had been...interesting. Somewhere along the line (after Qui-Gon said yes to our crazy plan) the conversation had shifted to a more excited tone, though I excused myself as soon as I was done eating. My headache was not getting better, and I knew that the day was just going to get more hectic. So I retreated to the tiny storage room I called my own and laid down on my stiff bed. My whole body was aching, but I didn’t have any bacta or medicine that could help me. I groaned softly and rolled over to where I kept a medkit under my tiny dresser and shifted through its contents. I hummed happily when I found a stim, that was perfect for right now, but I had a feeling, (and by that I meant the force was telling me) that I should save it for later. I sighed and stuffed it into one of the pockets in my belt, stashing it for whenever I would need it.  
“Come on man, give me a break,” I grumbled, grabbing a roll of bandages and gauze.

I took off one of my boots as carefully as I could, and rolled my pant leg up to reveal the bled through bandages beneath. I grimaced and grit my teeth, trying my best not to make a sound as I peeled back the fabric. It wasn’t stuck to the vibroknife induced wounds, thank god, but it was still painful.  
“I was careful but I still got hit twice.” I muttered, cringing as the bandage peeled away from a stuck area, “Gotta be faster next time.” 

I sighed, God I wish I had bacta.

The wounds weren’t bleeding that much anymore, but they were still red and irritated. Thank gods I had gotten them two days earlier, else I really wouldn't have been able to walk, let alone run today. Peeling the bandages away had disturbed the two slashes on the back of my right leg, and they were now starting to bleed from the edges of the scabs again. Bright red dots started to well from the edges, and I bit my cheek as I rummaged through my medkit for the antiseptic cream. 

“Finally!” I exhaled, grabbing the tube and smearing it over my wounds with a small whimper.  
Damn that stuff stung! I was so glad when I finished, I rushed to lay gauze over the slashes and wrap my leg up again. I glanced at the bruises on my hip, knee, and ribs, then sighed. There was nothing I could do about those. I finished dressing my wounds and put the medkit away, stowing the used bandages in a hidden corner under my bed. I’d throw them out later. Then I put my boots back on and stood up, suppressing a small noise of pain and drawing the force around myself. The force instantly responded, wrapping around me and pressing at my wounds in gentle soothing waves. I silently thanked it and made my way back to the living room, where everyone was getting ready to leave. 

Shmi made her way over to me and gave me a look. 

“You’re limping.” She said quietly, gesturing down at my leg.

“Uhh…” I tried for a smile, “I didn’t notice?”

Shmi sighed and pressed her hand to my hip, frowning at me when I flinched and moved away. “What did you do this time?” She asked, looking more worried than she had any business being.

I shrugged and tapped my blaster, “Went to the mines again to deliver supplies this morning, wasn’t as careful as I thought.”

She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed, glancing back at Ani who was talking excitedly with Padmé and Qui-Gon, then down at my legs. “Did you at least succeed?”

I nodded and smiled brightly, “Yep! I _may_ have gotten into a fight, but at least they’ve got supplies now.”

“I’m _trying_ to be mad at you,” the woman I considered a mother whispered, “But I’m just proud.”

I grinned and hugged her, “Thanks mama.”

She returned the embrace and shook her head at me. “ _T_ _ry_ to be careful next time Ava.”

I closed my eyes and pursed my lips, there probably wasn’t going to be a next time, “I can’t promise I won’t get hurt, but for you, I’ll try.”

“So,” I motioned towards the group, “What happened while I was gone?”

Shmi sighed and shook her head, “They’ve convinced themselves that you and Ani can win the podrace. I’d imagine they’re going to convince Watto that it’s a good idea too.” 

“Lady Shmi,” 

We turned to Qui-Gon as he walked over, “My companions and I are going to Watto shortly. We shouldn’t be long.”

Shmi nodded, “I doubt this will work, but I wish you good luck all the same.”

I slipped away from mama’s side and walked over to the wall, intending on standing and watching the conversations around me. But then Padmé excused herself from talking to Ani and made her way over to me.

“I would like to thank you for your help earlier,” Padmé smiled, “I don’t know what we would have done without you.”

“Ehh,” I waved my hand from side to side, “Could have gone worse. I don’t think my being here had any influence on the events.”

The young queen seemed confused by my words, “Oh. Well, regardless, thank you Ava.”

I smiled back at her. “You’re welcome. I’m sorry Ani has been a menace.”

(And yes, I was fully aware of my pun)

Padmé rolled her eyes and grinned, “Oh he’s no trouble. He’s very cute.”

I snorted and stifled a laugh. “Not what I would call “ _annoying_ ” but you do you Padmé.”

She giggled and shook her head at me, “You have a funny way of speaking.”

“Oh?” I raised an eyebrow, “I wasn’t aware.”

She shook her head, “I mean no offense-”

“I know, I’m just teasing you.”

She sent me a mock glare, that quickly softened back into a curious smile, “Where are you from?”

I squinted at her and tilted my head.

“I’m very sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you, but I was curious because you had mentioned that you weren’t from Tatooine earlier and-”

I waved my hand at her, cutting her off. “No no, it’s not offensive. I get it, the curiosity I mean.”

“Oh.” 

I tilted my head back against the wall and gazed upwards, “I’m from a planet called Terra, in a solar system we hadn’t named. We were the only life in our system, from what we knew, and we were a planet of only humans that always has been humans. I’m not really sure where it is in the galaxy, but my home didn't have a lot of communication with the outsiders.” At her confused gaze, I added, “We weren’t largely space-faring yet, though we have been to space and sent satellites and probes.”

That just made Padmé even more confused. “I can’t seem to remember any planets with intelligent life that haven’t been contracted into the Republic or Galactic systems yet. But the galaxy _is_ quite large.”

I snorted again, “ ” _quite large_ ” is a _bit_ of an understatement.”

“I suppose so.” She nodded, gesturing for me to continue.

“One day, I was at school, the next thing I knew was we were getting dragged into an interplanetary war.” I felt bad telling her my fake backstory. She seemed genuinely concerned, “Fighting started happening, and since we weren’t advanced as you are, we started to get slaughtered. I wasn’t near the epicenter of the fighting, but I must’ve been close enough because one second I was outside in the field at school, the next thing I know I’ve been smuggled away on a refugee ship, without my family, and with people I barely know.”

“That’s terrible!” Padmé gasped, “The Republic should’ve known about this!”

I shook my head and hid a wince. They couldn’t know because none of it was real. “Well, I don’t remember much after that, but I came-to surrounded by sand dunes, alone and _very_ confused.”

Then I smiled, “But something must have been looking out for me, be it the force or the universe, because Ani and Shmi found me and took me in. I’ve learned a lot more here on this dustball then I _ever_ learned back home. And yeah, of course I’m sad about it, but I can’t change what happened. I just have to keep moving forwards.”

Padmé nodded sagely, “That’s very wise of you. I know my apologies mean nothing, but I am truly sorry for what you’ve been through. I’m glad you’re safe now.” She paused, “As safe as you can be out here.”

I laughed, “True. And thank you.”

She grinned up at me, “I’m glad our ship malfunctioned honestly, if it hadn’t, then I would never have gotten to meet you Ava.”

“Touché Padmé.” I grinned back.

Our budding friendship was cut short when Qui-Gon called for the queen. She waved back at me before she, Jar Jar, and the Jedi left our home.

The three of us stood in silence for a minute after they left, none of us really sure what to say next.

“So,” I shifted my stance and crossed my arms, “How long do you think it will take them?”

Ani hummed and tilted his head at me, “I dunno. Watto is _super_ stubborn, but I think the Jedi will convince him pretty quick.”

I raised an eyebrow but didn’t comment. If I didn’t have knowledge of the future, then I would’ve called out Qui-Gon’s bullshit, but I wasn’t really in any condition to say that was I? 

“Ava,” Shmi touched my arm, startling me out of my thoughts, “You already know the answer to this, all of this, don’t you?”

I leaned away from her and nodded, tightening my arms around my torso. Anakin seemed to notice my distress, because he tugged on our bond and sent _love/worry_. Shmi also nudged at our force bond. And even if she wasn’t nearly as powerful as Ani was, she still had _some_ force abilities. Shmi sent me _Worry/resolve/love._ I shook my head and slid down to the floor, curling my knees to my chest and bowing my head into my chest. I didn’t want to think about what would happen. I was scared, I had just gotten used to life on Tatoo, now it was going to be ripped away from me. I’d done so much, come so far and it felt like I didn’t have anything to show for it because at the end of the day, I didn’t matter. I could hear my pulse pounding in my ears, my chest was tight with fear. 

I didn’t _want_ things to change.

I didn’t _want_ Ani to become a Jedi. 

I wanted everything to stay the same, us and our happy family. I would free Ani and mama soon, I almost had enough money saved! But no. Apparently it had to happen. The force swirled around me, only affirming my assumptions.

_Yes, it must happen._

“I-” I swallowed the lump in my throat and looked up at my new family through my lashes, “I do. B-but, I don’t- I’m scared of change.”

Shmi sat down beside me and wrapped her arm around my shoulder, pulling me into her side. Ani sat down on my left and snuggled into me.  
Shmi hummed and rested her chin on my hair, “Change is scary for all of us Ava.”

Ani nodded into my side, “But it’ll be okay.”

I sniffed and wiped at my eyes. “Yeah…”

As we sat together on the floor of our small apartment, Shmi began to hum softly. I closed my eyes and leaned my head on her shoulder, pushing my cheek into the rough material of her dress. Anakin started to hum too, taking one of my hands and lacing our fingers together. Eventually, my heart rate calmed down, and my breathing steadied enough so that I could join in the song. It was my favorite, and Shmi always sang it when I was upset. It was an old slave song, about changing hands but keeping everything that made you special. Working through the heat and pain and finding relief in your brethren. It was actually a pretty morbid song, but for me, it was hope. When the song ended we stayed huddled together, and Ani had wedged himself between mama and I.

“Thank you.”

Shmi pressed a kiss to my forehead, “Always _ar’amata_.”

“Forever _eskai, vakki_.” I muttered, squeezing Ani’s hand.

I stretched out and stood up, offering a hand to Shmi and pulling her into a hug. Shmi laughed and hugged me back.

“Now, I don’t know when our guests will be back, but we should wait in the sitting room in the meantime.”

“Yeah! We can play that game you like Ava!” Ani exclaimed, “The one with the glass beads?”

I smiled, “You mean mancala?”

“Yeah, sure.” 

Shmi shook her head at us, “And while you play, Ava can tell us why she is limping.”

“Ah that’s-” I started to defend myself but Ani just started fussing over me.

I relented and let myself be checked over. Ani dragged me over to the sitting area and pulled me to a seated position. I winced as I sat down but held myself from saying anything. No use making it seem worse than they thought it already was. But hey, at least I was still able to walk normally! For the most part. I reluctantly took off my outer tunic, thin shirt, and belt, allowing Shmi to see my torso. She cursed in Huttese and I raised an eyebrow at her reaction. She _never_ cussed. 

“ _Chu ta_ Ava!” She exclaimed, “What did you do?!”

I shrugged. “A tunnel may or may not have collapsed on me while I was running from bounty hunters.” At her incredulous look, I hastily added, “I got out though!”

She closed her eyes and sighed, only to open them and level me with a chastising look. “ _Lu_ _ø_ _n_ _Ar-Amu anak!_ ” she scolded, placing her hands on my skin and pressing gently on a rather large bruise, “You have to be more careful!”

I sighed and pulled away from her, pulling my clothes back on. "This is exactly why I didn't tell you. I didn't want you to freak out." I placed my hand over hers, "I'm still going to race mama, I'm okay."

She sighed and leaned her forehead against mine. "I know Ava. I just worry. I love you, I don't want you to be so hurt."

I smiled and pulled back, "It comes with the job of being Leia and freeing the Amavikka mama."

She shook her head, "And I am so, _so_ proud of you _anak_."

"I don't like seeing you hurt either Ava." Ani said quietly, "And I don't understand what you're doing since you and mom keep it from me all the time. I'm scared for you."

I hummed softly and pulled him into a hug. "I know Ani. But everything will be okay soon. Trust me."

He hugged me back and nodded. "I do Vea."

"Now," I stood up and stretched, "Let's go talk to Watto eh?"

Ani rolled his eyes at my terrible imitation of the Toydarian. I just grinned.

••••~~~••••

Ani and I walked side by side back to Watto's shop. I could tell he was still upset with me, he usually couldn't stop talking but now he was kicking up sand and glaring ahead, pointedly keeping his eyes off me. I sighed and crossed my arms. Nothing I said would make him less angry with me, I should've said something earlier. I scowled and glared at the ground. I was hoping to avoid a situation like this, especially now since we were going to be podracing so soon. Shmi wanted to drag me from the races, and I knew Ani would have said the same if we hadn't designed the Podracer to be operated by two people. 

Karking fantastic. 

I sighed and pushed apologies across our bond and I felt Ani soften. "I _am_ sorry Ani," I said softly, "This was exactly why I _didn't_ tell you or mama."

He stopped walking and turned to me, unshed tears in his eyes. 

"I should have known that you were hurt! I knew something was wrong earlier when you were so tired when we met them!"

"I'm sorry Ani."

He shook his head, "I should have said something! Now Mom isn't gonna let you race!" He stopped to wipe his arm across his eyes, "I can't do this without you…"

I bent down and placed my hands on his chubby cheeks, pressing our foreheads together. "I know Ani. You won't. I'll always be by your side okay? I love you, _ma tei jekk ve'asla_." 

He sniffed and wiped at his eyes again, "I know, _asla've os jekk ma_."

"Now," I stood up and ruffled his hair, "Let's go talk to Watto eh?"

He wrapped his pinky around mine and nodded, straightening and putting on a stern face (well, as stern as a baby-faced kid could manage). "Mmhm."

We walked hand in hand to the rundown junk shop, talking idly about the parts we still had to finish on our racer. We entered the shop together, causing Watto to startle and send me a glare. I smiled at him and hopped up on the counter, wondering where the hell Qui-Gon was. I let Ani lead the conversation with the Toydarian, only speaking up when Watto didn't seem convinced. Ani was more likely to convince him to go along with the crazy idea, he had a soft spot for my little brother and mama. I knew he didn't really like me, only had a grudging respect over my skills and because of that one time I had caught someone who had stolen his credits and returned the money threefold. So I was really only there to reinforce the idea. Ani having my support was what finally made him cave and consider the offer. I grinned and swung my legs happily. Mission accomplished. Now for the Jedi man to do his job.

I watched as Qui-Gon entered the shop, sharing a quick glance with Ani. 

"The boy tells me you want to sponsor them in the race." Watto said, flying up to the man, "How can you do this? Not on the Republic credits I think, huh?"

Qui-Gon pulled a holodisk from under his tunic and turned it on. I hopped off the counter to get a better look. An image of a Nubian vessel popped up. 

"My ship will be the entry fee." 

My eyes widened at his offer. I knew everything would supposedly turn out fine, but gods damn, that was a sleek looking ship. Evidently Ani had the same thought, I could see a spark come to life in his eyes at the rotating image of the ship. 

Watto rubbed his chin and narrowed his eyes. "Oh, not bad! Not bad. A Nubian huh?"

"It's in good order, except for the parts I need." Qui-Gon explained, leveling the bug with a passive look. 

Watto looked disbelievingly at the man. "What would the kids ride eh? They smashed up my pod in the last race." He tsked and glared at me, "Will take some long time to fix it."

I shrugged. It wasn't our fault!

"It wasn't our fault, really!" Ani exclaimed, voicing my thoughts, "Sebulba flashed us with his vents."

"We actually saved most of the pod," I added, putting a hand on Ani's shoulder.

Watto chuckled, "Mmm, that you did huh." He pointed towards the two of us, "The kids are good. No doubts there eh?"

Qui-Gon raised his chin, "Well I have acquired a pod in a game of chance, the fastest ever built."

I slapped a hand over my mouth to keep myself from laughing out loud. Oh sweet Ar-Amu, he really _was_ just bullshitting his way through this huh?

Watto rolled his eyes at me, "I hope you didn't kill anyone I know for it huh?" 

From the way he was chuckling, I doubted he would have minded if that was actually the case. Regardless, the Jedi smirked and played along. 

"So," Watto crossed his arms, "You supply the pod and the entry fee, I supply the boy and girl, we split the winnings...50-50 I think eh?"

I shrugged at Ani when he looked up at me. What was I supposed to do about the deal? Make it fair? Ha, no. 

"If it's going to be 50-50 I suggest you front the cash for the entry." Qui-Gon remarked, striding past Watto and further into the shop. 

I narrowed my eyes at the way the force pulsed slightly at his words. My best guess was that he was trying another force suggestion. I stayed silent, following the adult's conversation with my eyes. Nothing I said would be helpful right now. 

"If we win," the Jedi stopped and faced Watto again, "You keep all the winnings, minus the cost of the parts I need. And if we lose," he started walking again, "You keep my ship."

Shavit. I bit my bottom lip to keep from blurting out. I wanted to alter the deal and make him include freeing Ani and Shmi, but I knew that wouldn't help. I was relying on the ludicrous amount of money I had stashed away to free Shmi, and Ani if it was never included in the deal.

"Either way," Qui-Gon glanced at me then back to Watto, "You win."

Watto rubbed his chin and hummed in his raspy way, considering the deal.

 _Take it, take it_. I chanted through the force.

"Deal!" He finally exclaimed, shaking Qui-Gon's hand firmly.

I grinned and cheered internally. Yes! Ani smiled at me and squeezed my hand. 

As Qui-Gon exited the shop, Watto spoke again in Huttese. 

" _Your friend is a foolish one methinks_."

I smirked, " _Maybe, maybe_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's translations of the Amavikka language used in this chapter as they appear in order.
> 
> Ar'amata = Loved one (lit: Sun child)  
> Eskai = Dearest parent (lit: Dearest guardian)  
> Vakki = Darling sibling (lit: "Loved" little sibling)  
> Chu ta! = A curse or exclamation akin to goddamnit  
> Lu øn Ar-Amu anak! = For gods sake child! (lit: Of the Suns[gods] child!)  
> Ma tei jekk ve'asla = I'll stay until we are dragged apart (lit: I am with you)  
> Asla've os jekk ma = You'll stay until I am dragged away (lit: You are with me)
> 
> Fun fact #1: Anak is the gender-neutral term for child, since the language doesn't have gendered nouns  
> Fun Fact #2: the weird ø is the o sound in the word stroke, since I didn't want you to read it like "turning something" on


	4. Anticipation

I couldn't keep the grin off my face the entire time we walked home. It was happening! I couldn't wait to podrace, even if it was extremely dangerous for a human, let alone two humans. There was just something about the thrill of the scorching wind on your skin and the thrum of the power thrusters in front of you. Ani swung our hands as we talked, chatting excitedly with Padmé about what we were going to do to finally finish the podracer. I had insisted we name it, and so when I pulled off the tarp to reveal the two person racer, I couldn't help but tell everyone her name. 

"Here's the Sahara Vast." I patted the pod fondly, "She's not much but she's got spirit."

Padmé nodded appreciatively, "A fine looking pod." She paused, "Though I do admit I have little to no knowledge about ships or speeders. And you said you built this yourselves?"

Ani grinned, "Yeah! We've been working on it for six months! Ava goes and gets the parts I need, and then we put them on together."

I laughed at his excitement and shook my head fondly. "You do most of the engineering work though, I help where I can."

He rolled his eyes, "Poodoo. You fixed up half the motivator!"

Padmé giggled at our exchange and smiled fondly at Ani. I ruffled his hair and smiled back at the young queen. 

"Well, I think it's fascinating."

I rolled my eyes as Ani went into another rant while he worked, Padmé's attention thoroughly captured. I found his obvious crush on her cute, though I wasn't sure if the feelings were reciprocated. Regardless, they would be occupied for a while, the perfect time to go lay down and rest for a bit. Maybe re-braid my long hair and get a snack. As I was walking back inside, I caught the tail end of Shmi and Qui-Gon talking. I stopped and ducked into the doorway, leaning so I could listen in on their conversation. I knew I shouldn't be eavesdropping, but I didn't trust the Jedi. Something about him was shifty. I frowned, plus I still hadn't forgiven him for treating Obi-Wan so badly in cannon. 

"You should be very proud of your children." Qui-Gon said, "They give without any thought of reward."

"Well, they know nothing of greed." Shmi said quietly. 

I ducked my eyes down at her words, feeling even more guilty for listening. She was being too nice, I wasn't that great. Ani on the other hand, he was as pure as they came. 

"They have these-"

"They have special powers." Qui-Gon cut her off.

Shmi sounded sad when she replied. "Yes."

"They can see things before they happen, that's why they appear to have such quick reflexes." The man added.

I pursed my lips, wondering how many of these things he saw in me versus Ani. I hoped he meant Ani more than me. 

"It's a Jedi trait."

Shmi sighed, "They deserve better than a slave's life."

"Why certainly." The man replied, "Anyone does. Had they been born in the republic, we could have identified them early."

I rolled my eyes at that and whispered, "Not likely."

His voice got softer, "The force is unusually strong with them, that much is clear."

I decided to step in before he could go any farther. 

"Mama!" 

Shmi startled and looked down at me, "Yes Ava?"

"I was thinking about making a snack for our guests, could you come help me?" I yelled up to her.

"Of course, just give me one more moment." She smiled at me, and I caught her silent thanks in the force.

"Okay, thanks!" I grinned up at her and ducked inside, quickly bolting to the window to overhear the rest of what they had to say. I had to strain my ears to hear them.

"Who was the father?" Qui-Gon asked.

"You can't just ask her that!" I snapped, digging my nails into the kitchen counter. "You never ask a slave woman that question! Stupid Jedi."

Shmi was silent for a second, "There was no father for Anakin. I carried him, I gave birth, I raised him." She paused, "I can't explain what happened."

"And the girl?"

Shmi sighed again, "She is not mine. Ava is a dune child, she appeared one day from the Jundland wastes, but I knew she was meant to be with us."

I nodded, "Damn right!"

"Ani adores her, I can't help but feel like she has always been with us, even if she isn't mine." She laughed, "I can't imagine what our life would be without her." 

"Ah." Qui-Gon rubbed his chin.

Oh,  _ that's  _ where Obi-Wan got it from.

"Can you help them?" Shmi asked.

"I don't know." The man replied, "I didn't actually come here to free slaves.

I sighed and turned away from the window, ignoring the dejected look on Shmi's face. "I know. I wish you had."

I set to chopping up a dried succe bar to get my aggression out on and to hold true to my "getting a snack" claim. I had developed a fondness for the bittersweet ration bar after one of my trips to Fashcia to negotiate water treaties. Of course I had brought some back with me, even if Ani didn't particularly like it, Shmi and I loved it. I think it was the sweetness that Ani didn't like, there weren't many sugary things on Tatooine. I sighed and rubbed my eyes, turning my attention to Shmi when she walked in. 

"Hey."

She sighed and walked over to me, taking the knife out of my hand, "You look exhausted, take a break, go help Ani."

I rolled my eyes and grabbed a few pieces of the bar, "I'm fine Shmi, I said I would make a snack, I have to hold true."

Shmi pushed me away from the counter and tugged on my braid, "Your dark circles say otherwise. Go have fun, I'll deal with the Jedi."

I scowled and turned around, "But that's the point mama! He asked you who Ani's father is! That's karking ridiculous, you just don't  _ do  _ that! Even if he is from the core!" I threw up my hands, "Outlanders, think they know everything! I'm  _ sorry  _ if I'm  _ upset _ , but this is banthashit!"

Shmi looked away and sighed again, then wiped her hands on a towel, "I know. But they know nothing of our ways." She smiled at me, "Don't hold it against them. I know you don't like Qui-Gon."

I pursed my lips and scuffed my shoe on the ground, "I don't  _ not _ like him, I just...ugh."

"Go on, shoo." Shmi laughed and shook her head at me, "I can finish, I'm sure Ani needs your help."

"Fine, fine." I popped the bar in my mouth and walked away, skirting around the table and running outside. 

I smiled when I saw Ani's friends gathered around our racer, laughing and helping to clean the sand off. Hara, the youngest of the group, instantly noticed me and turned around, cheering and yelling my name and of course turning all their attention towards me. "Ava! You're back!"

I laughed as she jumped up on me, supporting her and giving the small blond-haired girl a big squeeze, being careful of my ribs. "I am! I've been back for a few days Bunny."

She pouted and leaned back, tapping my nose, "Why didn't you tell me?!"

I bonked my forehead against hers and grinned, "I was helping the  _ kes _ ."

"Ooooh." She smiled and wiggled, hopping down to the ground, "But I still missed you." She stopped and put her hands on her hips, an adorable pose combined with her baby face, pouty lips and wispy hair, "Lele missed you too! You promised you would teach her more fighting!"

"I know, but I don't think I'm gonna be around long enough this time to do that." I winced, "She's gonna be mad."

Hara nodded, "Yeah, you better apologize."

I laughed and patted her on the head, "I will."

I wandered over to the racer with Hara at my side, tilting my head curiously. What were they up to now? And where the hell was Padmé? Everyone turned to look at me and greeted me with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Ani was rambling about how he needed to finish the drive motor and the transmission. I slid in beside him and reached around his stubby fingers, sticking my longer ones into the compartment and turning a knob that he just couldn't reach. We just kind of clicked like that, seamlessly working together with no small part in thanks to our force bond. I let his rambling and the kid's conversations slide to background noise as I worked, instead humming a few Queen songs.

"Thanks," he chirped, ducking beneath my arm and going to mess with the loose wires to my right, "Can you get the lug connected to the steering? I can't reach it."

I hummed and made a grabbing motion for a sonic-wrench. Ani happily handed me one and a few of the marson screws I needed afterward. In turn, I traded him a mini welder and wire tape. 

~ _ Be careful with that _ .~

He rolled his eyes, ~ _ I know Vea, I've done this before _ .~

I snorted, ~ _ Yes, but safely and without zapping your fingertips? _ ~

He jabbed  _ irritation _ at me through our bond and elbowed my arm, causing me to hiss and drop the wires and the connection I was delicately trying to piece together. " _ Hey _ , I almost had that!"

He glared and stuck his tongue out at me. I pushed him over with the force and he screeched. 

"AVA!"

I cackled and fought him off, making sure to keep the screws in-between my lips from falling out and disappearing into the sand, while also keeping my very sharp wrench away from him and his waving arms. I eventually conceded after he tackled me and we called a truce.

"So," I turned to the group of kids from where I was sprawled out on the ground, "What's up with you guys?"

Kitster shrugged, "Nothing, just the usual. It was boring without you around."

"We had nobody to play with since Anakin was down in the dumps." Rei-Lon giggled, "We had to wait for you to get back."

Squall nodded, his big black eyes blinking rapidly, "I-I was busy, so I c-couldn't play."

Ewa rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, "You disappeared again."

I sat up and grimaced, "Yeah, sorry about that kiddos. Didn't mean to be gone so long, but when duty calls..."

"Eww." Hara made a disgusted face.

I laughed, "No, not like that Bunny."

Anakin suddenly shot up, shifting from foot to foot. "Guess what!"

"What?" The group chorused.

"We're in the Boonta race tomorrow." Ani bragged.

They gasped and I rolled my eyes fondly. My little brother was and always would be  _ the  _ drama queen.

"What!" Kitster exclaimed, "With this?!"

"Hey," I stood up and wagged a finger at him, "I'll have you know Sahara is in fact a beautiful pod!"

"You're such a joker Ani!" Squall twittered, "There's no way!"

Ewa grimaced, "You've been working on that thing for months!"

"It's never gonna run," Hara said.

I made a displeased noise. They weren't being fair, my, sorry,  _ our  _ pod was a beaut. She was made from our blood sweat and tears, countless sweltering days and freezing nights spent putting it together, piece by piece.

"Come on, let's go play ball." Rei-Lon turned away, apparently bored with the sight, "Keep racing Ani, you're both gonna be bug squash."

"Off with ye!" I exclaimed, shooing them away, "Non-believers are nigh welcome here!"

Squall tittered a laugh and waved goodbye as the kids left. Kitster was the only one who stayed behind.

"You can go Kit," I smiled at Ani's best friend, "It's gotta be boring just to stand there and watch us get all greasy."

Kit frowned, "But I wanna hang out with you guys."

I shrugged, dusting off my pants and taking my blaster out to blow the sand off it, "Alright, just don't get hurt."

I turned when Padmé walked over and waved. She smiled and waved back. Then I noticed Jar Jar had moved to the power cell connections in the thrusters. He was getting a little too close to the energy binders. Luckily, Ani was thinking the same thing I was.

"Hey Jar Jar," Ani said as he plugged a cable into the pod car, "Watch out for those energy binders."

"If your body gets caught it'll be numb for a few hours," I warned.

Jar Jar nodded then proceeded to duck down directly under the beam to grab the hydrospanner he dropped. Either forgetting or just straight up  _ ignoring  _ what we had just said. Then he stood up and his head went directly into the purple beam. He gurgled and shook his now numb mouth. 

"My tongue is fat!" 

I snorted, he sounded like he was speaking through marshmallows. "I told you to be careful!"

He nodded, then looked around. "My tongue. Wrench. Where is da wrench?" He made a happy sound, "Oh, dare it is!"

I jumped up as the force giggled around me. Oh shit he was about to get his hand stuck and mess up the thrusters! No nononono! 

"Uh-oh. Uh, umm, I'm stuck. Ani, Ava?" He looked pitiful like that.

I ran around C3 and R2, sighing and stopping the Gungan from moving and making it worse. 

"You know," C3 spoke to R2, "I find that Jar Jar creature to be a little...odd."

/It is pretty dumb for an organic./ R2 agreed.

"Here, stop struggling, let me help." I pleaded, shooting a warning look to the droids.

Jar Jar whimpered and nodded.

I tsked at how far he had wedged his hand in the fan and shook my head. "Stay still."

I squinted and put my hand in front of the fan, focusing and pulling on the force around us, just a little bit. He gasped and almost jumped, but I stopped and glared at him. "No moving. I mean it. Do you want your hand to get chopped off?"

His eyes widened and he gulped, shaking his head frantically. 

"Thought so."

I went back to nudging the force around his hand, sliding the blades away bit by bit until I knew his hand was free. I reached forward and pulled it out, sighing and glancing around to make sure Qui-Gon didn't notice me. No, he didn't, good. He was inside with Shmi. I pulled the Gungan away as I saw Ani climb inside the pod. 

"You don't even know if this thing’s gonna run." Kit complained.

"It will." Ani said confidently, "Come on Ava!"

I grinned. We were finally gonna test it! Yes! 

"I think it's time we find out." Qui-Gon muttered.

I shrugged and skirted around him, pointedly avoiding the suspicious gaze he watched me with. I climbed in the backseat and flipped a few switches, reading the pod for startup.

"Here," Qui-Gon handed Ani a battery, "Use this power charge."

"Yes sir!" Ani grinned, eagerly taking it and handing it back to me.

I took it and stuck the charge into the power port, praying to the force Sahara worked. 

"Come on Kitster, let's move away." Qui-Gon chided, leading the boy away from us and to a safe distance. 

I glanced briefly at Jar Jar, forcing myself not to roll my eyes when I saw he hadn't moved since I'd freed him. Oh gods. Thankfully, Padmé swooped in and dragged him a safe distance away.

"We ready Ani?" I asked, looking up from the cramped backseat.

"Yep!" He sat down and grabbed the handles, "Flip the switch!"

I grinned and did so, laughing when the engines started to rumble, then sputtered and came to life. I let out a loud whoop of glee. It worked! It actually worked!

"It's working!" Ani shouted, "It's working!"

"Hell yeah it is!" I yelled back.

I grinned like a maniac, even as I felt tears start to prickle at my eyes. No turning back now, we were really going to do this huh? 

Looking at the back of Ani’s head, I realized just how much time had passed since I had first found myself on Tatooine. Two years, two whole years. Ani really had grown so much. It seemed like just yesterday that I was nervously meeting him for the first time, now we were brother and sister. Two years that I had been forced to adapt and work and live. Getting used to my new body and new powers, stealing my first blaster, practicing shooting it and aiming on the sand rats, learning hand to hand combat from a bounty hunter, my first kill, learning to control my invisibility, stealing supplies for us, learning to sweet talk and negotiate, freeing my first Amavikka, learning to play sabacc and how to win almost every game, learning Binary, learning Huttese, learning the hidden language, learning how to fix almost anything, learning mechanics from Ani, going off-world for the first time to negotiate the water treaties and start Stronghold, so many things. Having my first panic attack, getting my first major injury, breaking my first bone, getting my first concussion, getting drunk for the first time, being captured for the first time, being drugged for the first time, fighting alone for the first time. There were so many firsts. Teaching Ani life lessons, teaching kids how to defend themselves, teaching myself how to listen and use the force. I wasn’t lying when I told Padmé earlier that I had learned more here than I ever would have back in my universe. Gods, I was nineteen now, I was considered an adult. And as I sat there in the seat of a podracer, watching little Anakin Skywalker, I realized how I wouldn’t want it any other way. I would protect him, try my best to make things better for everyone. Sure, I was scared of change, but...this-- this beginning was going to be for the better. 

I was doing it for Anakin, for Shmi. For them, for  _ myself _ . I was going to do better,  _ be  _ better. 

Things were going to change.

I would make sure of that.


	5. Here And Now

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter did not want to be written, but I managed it...somehow. Hope you enjoy!

The cantina was too crowded. Too many voices, chittering, laughing, yelling, talking. Everyone was excited for the race tomorrow but all I felt was dread. Music blasted from speakers, the live band playing some jazzy tune. Most of the seats were taken, the booths were crowded with people drinking and playing sabacc. I found a nice little corner to lean against, observing the grimy crowds with little interest. The dim yellow lights were starting to hurt my eyes, but I stayed where I was. A bounty hunter covered in dried blood walked past, and I wrinkled my nose at the scent that wafted along with them. It smelled like a sewer in here, a sewer filled with sweat, blood, and alcohol. I scoffed and raised my bottle to my lips, taking a long drag of lukewarm liquid. It was a watered-down Lothal beer called Drosa, mixed with some sort of sweet pink milk and it smelled faintly like a strong vodka. Not my favorite, but it was the best I could get for the little credits I had on me. I laughed and shook my head at myself. Look at me, standing in a grimy cantina drinking the day before I had to race. It wouldn't do me any good to get drunk, but a pleasant buzz would be nice. My lips turned down in a frown as my thoughts wandered again. I didn't know how to feel about Qui-Gon. He was nice enough, but he didn't seem like he noticed how his attitude affected the people around him. I didn't like him, but I didn't hate him either.

I sighed and picked at my tunic, rubbing my hand over the rough material. The texture was nice, a little dirty and rough, but soft. I scanned the area again, huffing when I couldn't find who I was looking for. He was late. Either that or he had run into business and would comm me. Either way, it was getting late and I wanted to be home for dinner. 

"Where is he?" I muttered, taking another sip of my drink. 

Ah shavit, it was empty. 

A heavy sigh escaped my mouth and I rolled my eyes, pushing off the cool wall with a grunt and striding over to the bar counter. I wedged my way between a Twi'lek and a Bunubo, tapping my empty bottle on the counter to catch the bartender's attention.

I cleared my throat and tapped my empty bottle again, louder. "Oi, can I get a refill?" 

"One second!" A rough voice yelled.

I sighed and dragged my braid over my shoulder, picking at the loose charcoal strands along its length.

"Sorry bout that kid."

I looked up and smirked, "Well, if it isn't Grouch. How ya doing old man?"

The old pantoran snorted and shook his head at me, "How many times do I have to tell ya not to call me that kid?"

I rolled my eyes, "As long as you call me _kid_ old man. I ain't a kid anymore."

Grouch sighed and scratched his long and stark white beard, conceding to my point. His skin was a light blue from years in the sun, and he had wrinkles everywhere. His kind gold eyes glittered in the lowlight of the cantina, ever watching.

"Suppose not, but I still ‘member when you were seventeen, a scrappy lil’ thing eh?"

"Hey!" I pouted and crossed my arms, "I'm not _scrappy_. Just highly resourceful."

He laughed so hard he had to bend over. I had no idea why what I said was that funny, but I didn't mind if it meant he was happy.

He exhaled and wiped a year from his eye, "That's a good one kid." He cleared his throat, "As I was sayin, it's been two years, I remember when ya got yer’ first drink, had to walk you home that night. Shmi was not happy"

I pursed my lips and rolled my eyes, "Look I was eighteen, it was my birthday, I was sad and some friends recommended that I check this place out. I’d never had a drink before, I didn't _mean_ to get smashed."

Grouch chuckled and reached over the counter to pay my shoulder, "I know kid. I'm just sayin’ how I appreciate yer business."

"Banthashit!" I waved his hand away and pointed an accusing finger at him, "You're soft on me old man."

He sighed and smiled fondly, "Yeah. Yeah I am kid. Don't go 'round spillin' my secrets now eh?"

“I won’t, I like you too much.” I smiled, “Now, can I get another refill on my Drosa?”

He grabbed the empty bottle and reached under the counter, quickly finding a replacement and placing it in front of me. It had little dew drops on the side, so it must have been cold. 

“Chilled huh?” I pulled out a few credits, “How much that one gonna cost me?”

He pushed my hand away with his rougher one and chuckled, “This one’s on the house kid. I heard you and the little ‘un are gonna race tomorrow in the main event.”

I paused from where I had raised the bottle to my lips, widening my eyes and shushing him. “Grouth! Don’t advertise it!” I hissed, “It was Ani’s idea anyways, I’m just there to manage energy and overall shape. He’s the one doing the actual driving.”

He raised his eyebrow at me and put his hands on his hips. “My real name eh? Must’ve got yer lekku in a twist. Don’t worry kid, no one’s listening ‘ere.”

I leveled him with a skeptical look. “I have hair, not lekku. Besides, there are ears everywhere around here, but thanks for the freebie.” 

“Yer just paranoid. And yer welcome kid.”

My comm went off just as he was about to say something else, but I stood up and grabbed my new drink before he could. “Sorry Grouch, gotta take this.”

He waved me off, “No problem, good luck tomorrow.”

“Thanks!” I grinned and saluted him before dashing out of the cantina and sliding into an empty alleyway nearby. 

I fumbled the beeping device off my belt and held it up, sighing in relief when I saw the name of the caller. Finally! Took him long enough. I pressed the on button and held it up to my mouth. “Hey, you’re late.”

A scoff, “I was busy. Can’t make it there anytime soon.” 

I groaned and slid down the wall, folding my legs beneath me. “Come on! I thought this job was supposed to be fast.”

“There were complications.” His gruff voice answered.

I pouted and shook my head again, “But we had _plans_ Jango.”

A pause on his end, “Not my fault, things got in the way.”

“Sure, sure.” I sighed and ran my free hand over my head and down my greasy hair, twirling the loose curly stands around my fingers. “It’s okay, I get it.”

He sighed and there was shuffling, “I got what you asked, we need to reschedule a pick up time.”

“Mmhm.”

“Kid,” Jango paused again, “It wasn’t my intention to get caught up. At least I got what you wanted. I’ll reduce the price for the delay.”

“Fifteen percent.” I smirked, “It’s only fair.”

“Are you trying to rob me? No, ten is as high as I'll go.”

I groaned and rubbed my hand over my eyes, “Okay, okay, fine. How soon do you think you’ll get here?”

“At least a week.” He answered. “There are some stops I have to make first.”

I doubted that for some reason. But I relented. The Mandalorian was always busy somehow, it was a wonder how I had even got him to stop and agree to train me in the first place. I side-eyed a woman as she walked into the alleyway and she quickly turned away at my scowl. 

“Did you get the new A-600 pistol?” I asked eagerly. 

I‘d had my eye on the blaster for a while, and when Jango said he was swinging by Coruscant I'd immediately asked for him to pick one up for me, along with the simple bronze chains I had requested earlier. He’d reluctantly agreed, not without charging me of course. But hey, he’d given me a discount since he liked me. Or maybe it was because I was a pain in his ass cause I was so persistent. Either way, a win for me.

He huffed (though that was as close as he got to a laugh), “Of course I did.”

“Yes!” I grinned, “Oh guess what?”

“I can’t talk for much longer Skywalker, what do you want this time?”

I pouted, “Don’t be mean. But anyways,” I shifted the comm to my other hand, “Ani and I are going to race in the Boonta 500 tomorrow. You know that big podrace that I talked about?”

“What did you do this time?” He said gruffly.

“Nothing!” I held up my hands in defense, even if he wasn’t there, “We’re trying to help some outlanders that got stranded here. I have a good feeling about this one, I really think we’re gonna win.”

A brief sigh, “Try not to wreck the pod this time.”

I grinned, aww he did care. “We’ll be careful, promise.”

“Sure.” Another sigh, “I need to go now. I’ll comm you again about the delivery time.”

“Okay, bye! Be careful.” 

The comm beeped to signal the call had ended. I instantly groaned and dug my palms into my eyes. Gods this was a mess. I was planning on leaving Tatooine with Anakin after we (hopefully) won the race, then we should get caught up in the Naboo blockade and I had no idea when I was going to be back on Tatooine, or if I would even leave in the first place. I exhaled slowly and shook my head. No, I had to hope for the best. We could work around it. I reached into one of the pockets on my belt and tapped the japor snippets in it, resting my head against the wall and taking a long drag of my slightly cool drink, relishing in the slight buzz it gave me. This was just a big mess.

I laughed out loud, “Just gotta hope for the best Ava. That’s all you can do right now.” I frowned, “Oh kark I forgot I have to have dinner with Qui-Gon and Padmé and Jar Jar. Ugh.”

Brushing sand off my pants, I stood up and began to walk home, scuffing my boots in the sand and watching the twin sunset. Sometimes I wished things could stay the same, but at the same time, I wanted a better life for Ani and for Shmi. And if I had to leave or deal with excessive drama for them, well, to me that was a small cost to pay. I finished off the rest my drink as the orange shadows got longer and more people started to disappear into the buildings around me. You know, Tatoo wasn't really _that_ bad, all things considered. I mean, of course the slavery, excessive poverty, gambling, Hutts, sand, little water, and heat were issues, but there was something comforting about how slow things moved around me. I was like the prow of a ship, cutting through stagnant waters and leaving ripples behind me. Things had gotten better in the two years I had been here, I had tried my best to make life better for everyone who lived on this dingy dustball. I was an inside-outsider. I wanted to help, and it was finally starting to show, if even just a little bit. I smiled at the suns and rested my arms behind my back, content to bask in the heat of the evening. Warm and dry air swirled around me, picking up the loose hairs I tucked behind my ears and blowing them in my face. I giggled and pulled them back, closing my eyes to let the breeze ghost along my skin. Wind on Tatooine was by no means gentle, but there was something comforting in the roughness of it. Unrelenting and strong, yet it stopped to caress my skin and clothes with a warm touch. I opened my eyes and sighed. Change was coming, but for now I was happy with what I had, even if I didn’t have much to begin with. I was happy with my life, actually _happy_.

I stopped outside our apartment, sighing and cracking my knuckles nervously. 

Dinner, you can do dinner. Everything is going to be fine. Just...be civil Ava.

I walked inside and smiled, Shmi was making Lual for dinner. One of my favorites. I tapped the sand off my boots and placed my empty bottle on a windowsill. 

I breathed in and exhaled slowly. “I’m back!”

“Welcome home!” Shmi’s voice called from the kitchen, “Dinner is ready, come sit before it gets cold!”

I smiled and entered the kitchen to Ani’s laughing and smiling faces. 

Everything will be okay, just wait, you’ll see.

  
  



	6. Promises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first of many promises, and a hopeful conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm so sorry I stopped updating this, I got really bad writer's block and then I got hyper fixated on new fandoms, and honestly it just took me forever to write this chapter. It's not my favorite but there were some important things in here. I am not abandoning this work, and I will be updating more frequently. I think this chapter was a huge block in the story and now that I've finished it we can move on!

Dinner was a relatively quiet affair, well, on my part. Everyone else chatted away, and seemed to get along quite well. I was mostly silent. Anxiety had taken control and my rapid spiral into worry for tomorrow stopped me from making anything but simple and polite conversation with the outlanders. I excused myself once I had finished eating, ducking outside and avoiding Shmi's concerned gaze.

"Karking finally. Ugh." I groaned and leaned on the balcony, hanging my arms over the ledge and swinging them back and forth. "That was a nightmare."

I paused and frowned, closing my eyes as my stomach turned uncomfortably. Gods, I was so unbelievably nervous. I had probably seemed so rude to our guests, but I had to get out of there. Their presence alone was suffocating, knowing the change that was bound to come (whether we won the race or not) was  _ not  _ doing wonders for my soul. 

I groaned again and pouted, sticking my bottom lip out and hanging my head. "What am I supposed to do? What if we lose the race? What if I can't get Watto to let Shmi go? What if Qui-Gon leaves Ani and I behind? What if Padmé dies?" I sighed and crossed my arms under my chin, staring out into the oddly quiet night. "I guess there's no way to know regardless," I reasoned with myself, "I just have to wish and hope and pray for the best."

I stood there for a bit, closing my eyes and slowing down my breath. Being anxious wouldn’t help, being cynical wouldn’t help. I just had to keep looking forward with a smile. 

"It's a lovely evening."

"Holyshit!" I jumped up and whirled around, my right hand settling in my blaster out of habit until my brain finally registered who was in front of me.

"Oh, um, hi Padmé. And yes, it is...isn't it?"

She giggled, "Yes, sorry for startling you."

I waved her off with a sheepish smile. "Don't worry about it, I'm just a naturally jumpy person." I sighed, "Anyways, what's wrong?"

Her delicate features twisted in a frown. "Nothing's wrong, I was wondering where you were, I'd like to ask you a question."

"Oh?" I raised an eyebrow and hopped up on the balcony ledge, "Ask away."

Padmé sighed, then hopped up onto the balcony beside me. 

"What's Stronghold?"

I frowned and turned my head to face her. How did she hear about that? Where was she listening  _ to  _ hear about that? I'd have to seriously revise my opinion and observation of the young queen. 

"How'd you find out about that?"

She pursed her lips, "When we were heading toward Watto's shop I overheard a group of people nearby talking about it. Going by your reaction, I assume it's something important?"

I exhaled sharply and smiled. "Well, yeah. It's not  _ really  _ a secret, but it's usually kept more on the down-low. I'm  _ very  _ surprised people would talk about it in the open like that, I might need to make rounds again."

"Make rounds for what exactly?"

I sent a sidelong glance her way, quirking a brow at her obvious interrogation. "Keeping words that aren't meant to be heard by  _ outlanders  _ unheard."

"Hmm." Padmé crossed her arms and turned away from my gaze, "Understandable. I also assume this is something that you're not willing to share with me. It would help if I could share it with the Queen. I'm sure she would be willing to help, especially with slavery."

I held back a snort. "As a handmaiden, I'm sure you know everything her majesty considers concerns eh?"

She nodded, "Well, yes. That's part of my job, the queen often can't go places where more...sensitive information is found. As a handmaiden, we are made to be her majesty's eyes and ears where she cannot."

I shrugged and smiled at her again, "Eloquent answer." 

"But?" She turned her inquisitive gaze back to me.

"But," I chuckled, "Unfortunately I can't tell you anything specific about that unless you've signed an NDA or are part of the cause. I can't have it leaking out to parties that aren't under my control or jurisdiction, or parties that aren't directly involved." I lowered my voice and turned to face her more seriously, "The Stronghold mission is for the good of the people, most stuff pertaining to it can be used against us in so many terrible ways, it would make life within Hutt space unfathomably worse for the lowest common denominator."

Padmé squared her shoulders and fixed me with a solemn look. "I understand."

"Good." I sighed again and relaxed my posture, rolling my shoulders and falling into a more comfortable pose. "Sorry about the serious talk, I don't usually say things like that but, because of your connections I had to make sure."

Padmé laughed, "Oh I understand perfectly. On lighter terms," she crossed her legs and put her hands in her lap, "I am curious about your education, I mean no offense, but you don't have the aura of an outer rim citizen. The way you speak and act adds to that."

I laughed, putting a hand to my face to hide my grin. "Well no. I said before that I was born elsewhere right?"

She nodded.

"My education is more or less normal from where I came from, though we didn't have the  _ best  _ school system in the world, I did do really well in language arts. We had standard mathematics, simple addition and subtraction up through algebra, calculus, and above. History and science were also taught, biology, geology, your standard stuff. I know it's hard to get even a halfway decent education out here, and even harder for slaves. I taught Ani as much as I could, but since my writing system isn't the same as Basic I couldn't really help him there."

Padmé was silent for a long moment before she nodded once more. "It's far better than most schooling I've seen in the outer rim. I didn't hear you mention how old you are though."

"Me?" I pointed to myself, "I'm nineteen, seventeen when I first came to Ani and Shmi."

She frowned again, "So how long were you in school for?"

"Umm, well," I tapped my thumb to my lips, "We have primary schooling for twelve years, starting from age six through eighteen. But before that there's kindergarten which is age five to six, and optional preschool from around age three to five. Most people usually go to college too, which can be anywhere from two to eight years. So in total, the average person goes to school for around seventeen eighteen years."

Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped, "That's ages! How could any child be expected to go to schooling for that long?! How much do they teach you?!"

"Not much," I admitted, "They prepare-" I rolled my eyes, “And that’s a generous term- us for the rest of our lives...supposedly.”

Padmé hummed. “Your homeworld culture certainly is odd, I can’t even imagine how boring that must have been.”

I burst out laughing, hugging my stomach and blinking rapidly, “Oh my gods you have no idea, it was horrible. I’m just glad I was able to pass on at least  _ something  _ meaningful to Ani.”

“You seem to have done a wonderful job Ava.” Padmé said softly, “Anakin absolutely adores you, from the conversations we’ve had.”

I blushed under the praise and laughed again, “That- well I wouldn’t say  _ adores _ , but he does tend to act like a baby duckling sometimes.”

The queen frowned, “Duckling?”

“Oh shit it’s umm...” I waved my hands around and furrowed my brow, trying to come up with a way to explain baby ducks to a person who had likely never seen one, “A baby bird, they’re known for following their mothers around constantly.”

Padmé grinned, “I would love to see one sometime, they sound adorable. Perhaps there’s an animal similar to it in the galaxy.”

“Maybe.” I exhaled softly and turned my attention back out to the desolate sand dunes beyond the slave commune.

Padmé seemed to pick up on my unease, though she opted to stay silent in the tension-filled silence that followed. We sat for a while, unusually gentle winds caressing our faces and blowing our hair out of their styles. I wondered what the young queen thought of my- _our_ \- sandy wasteland, it certainly wasn’t the best place to live, far from it, but I was oddly attached to the planet. I wondered if she could ever feel the same.

“You don’t have to participate in the race you know.” She finally broke the silence, her voice soft and hesitant, “You’ve already been so hospitable, pod-” she stuttered, “Podracing is beyond dangerous, you and Anakin shouldn’t risk your lives for us, random strangers you barely know.”

I hummed in acknowledgment, turning my head slightly to give her a reassuring smile. “No, we don’t have to. But we will.”

“But-” the girl, and really, that’s who she was, just a young girl with too much responsibility for her age, stuttered again, “But you- why?” She raised her head to lock eyes with me, a stricken and confused expression on her face.

I sighed again and shrugged, “Because that’s just who we are. I want to  _ help _ people, in any way I can.” I turned my body to face hers, placing my hands in my lap and turning my palms upwards, “Even if it puts my life at stake, hell, I do that regularly anyways, and the borderline is- well-” I huffed and smiled self-deprecatingly, “I can’t let Anakin do it alone. He’s- he’s like my baby brother, he’s so young, so  _ good _ . I don’t want to say no to him, and I can’t let him die without someone by his side. He doesn’t- nobody deserves to die alone.”

Padmé placed her hands in mine, so soft and delicate, so warm and young. She turned her eyes to me, glassy and filled with confusion and concern. It was, what I assumed, a rare moment of vulnerability for the girl, trusting so freely with someone she barely knew. 

“But  _ why _ _?"_ She asked, her voice so small, so soft, so  _ young _ .

I curled my fingers around hers and smiled gently, “Because the galaxy is cruel, because life is cruel, and while I might not be the most morally black or white person, I still want to be a good one. I want to help because I  _ want _ to. There’s nothing more to it Padmé, no tricks, no ulterior motives, I- we- just genuinely want to help you.”

Padmé scrunched up her face in disbelief before shaking her head and letting out a breathy laugh. 

“I don’t really believe you, and pardon my bluntness, but- well,” she laughed again, “It’s _immensely_ hard for me to believe.”

I giggled, “It’s okay, I get it,” I sighed and squeezed her hands once more before letting go, “And thank you for trusting us with something this important.”

“Of course,” She hopped off the balcony and brushed off her skirts, “You’re our only hope.”

I snickered at her unintentional joke. 

“Even if we lose, I’ll find some way to get you home safe and sound, I swear on it.”

Padmé frowned, “Don’t say that.”

“What?” I tilted my head, “I mean it though, if we do end up losing the race, or something goes wrong, I swear I’ll find  _ some _ way to get you home- _all of you home_ safely.”

She rolled her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, “Alright.”

I grinned and jumped up, heading to the sandblasted plasteel door and winking at the queen. “Come on, we’d better get inside before another sandstorm starts up.”

I think that conversation went well. I hope Padmé and I can become friends. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seriously, thank you guys for your kudos, comments, and of course reading this! It means a lot to me, and hopefully this next chapter should be a lot longer. It's surprisingly hard to transcribe the movie into a fic, especially when I'm adding on dialogue and events.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! This is my first fic and I'm super nervous to post it. It's supposed to be a self-insert, so you can change the name to whatever you want. I just thought we all needed an escape and this is an excellent way to do so.


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